Ophelia
John Everett Millais
JOHN EVERETT MILLAIS, 1952. OIL ON CANVAS
John Everett Millais sat for eleven hours a day, six days a week, for five months on the banks of the Hogsmill River in order to capture the backdrop for Ophelia, possibly the epitome of the Pre-Raphaelite ideal. The vulnerable woman was a popular subject within the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB), but none more so than Shakespeare’s wretched, tragic Ophelia - fated to die by her own mad hand, thanks to the actions of the despicable Prince Hamlet. Something of the madness of Ophelia’s tale presumably seized Millais, for his desire to paint her drove him to desperation - eventually building a weatherproofed hut in order to survive the winter’s painting. Using this desperation, Millais succeeded in his task - creating an immaculately detailed, brightly coloured and faithful truth of nature, contrasted sadly against the pale solemnity of the drowned Ophelia.